East of England

Leading UK artists have donated works for an auction raising funds to establish a national centre for the artist Thomas Gainsborough.

A nude painting by the 19th century English artist William Etty (1787-1849) starred in Sworders’ (22% buyer’s premium) sale in Essex. The 2ft 2in x 19in (66 x 49cm) oil on panel shows a naked woman in a wooded landscape, her head and body turned away from the viewer.

“There really does seem to be life in the traditional market”. Woolley & Wallis’ (22% buyer’s premium) latest Old Masters, British & European Paintings sale in Salisbury left specialist Victor Fauvelle in a buoyant mood.

Documentary pieces of early English porcelain always command a premium.

“Many think that the fashion for older mahogany furniture has died a death. However, the prices achieved at this sale go to show that these items are still incredibly desirable.”

Top-seller at guns specialist Southams (15% buyer’s premium) in Bedford on September 20 was acased pair of flintlock double-barrelled travelling pistols.

Cambridge Fine Art’s Nicholas Lury is an exhibitor at the upcoming Esher Hall Antiques & Fine Art Fair (October 7-9). He specialises in British paintings from the Victorian era and is based in Little Shelford.

This 17th century Indian painting attributed to one of the finest artists of the Mughal court was recently discovered in a private collection in Suffolk. Sworders will offer it for sale in their December 5 Country House Sale with an estimate of £10,000-15,000.

It’s only rock ‘n’ roll, but nevertheless rare concert posters are selling for large sums at auction.

Along with around 10 other stallholders, Mason’s Ironstone dealer Susan Skelton has been standing at the biannual two-day Peterborough Festival of Antiques since it launched in 1999.

Charlie King has reason to be proud of his performance at the Hingham Antiques Fair in Norfolk in August when he closed a deal for £900 on a 1906 Arts & Crafts silver tazza.

Located on the Vistula river in northern Poland, the old city of Torun somehow escaped undamaged from the ravages of the Second World War and is now recognised as one of the country’s national treasures.

Jewellery designers of the 1930s and '40s were attracted to Bakelite, a plastic resin developed in 1907 for industrial purposes, as it was both hard enough to cut and polish and available in a wide range of colours.

It was a busy summer for Keys (20% buyer’s premium), who had book sales in both July and August.

A c.1860 century bronze horse group by Pierre Jules Mene (1810-71) is among the pieces on offer at English and Continental Antique’s selling exhibition.

Five years ago I wrote a piece about Essex dealer Guy Chevenix-Trench of Antiques by Design who was standing at the 'Salvo' fair.

Victorian landscapes can often be difficult to shift at auction, but a fine panoramic view near Redhill in Surrey by Edward John Cobbett (1815-99) gave a boost to the Boningtons (20% buyer’s premium) sale in Epping on August 21.

Working horses painted by the Australian artist Harold Power (1878-1951) starred at Charles Ross Fine Art (17.5% buyer’s premium) on August 19 in Woburn, Bedfordshire.